Sucking the Dark
by Galbert-Kun
Summary: Konoha was on its way back up after the Pain invasion nearly erased the village. Unfortunately, their darkest hour is coming courtesy of a gungho "Konoha Killer." *Final chapter added, SHOCK ENDING*
1. Carnage

Disclaimer= **I do not own Naruto.**

A/N= **I'm trying a different format for this fic using three genres (drama, action, romance). I usually go heavy on the romance but after doing brainstorming for this fic, it would not make sense. I intend for the pairing to be InoSasu. You may be thinking how they will end up together… since this is fanfiction and anything is possible… you'll simply have to read to find how things pan out. With that being said, I hope this story is an enjoyable read for you.**

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Sasuke sat straight up on the table, eyes bandaged up after having the sharingan transplant surgery. Madara was cleaning up when he bluntly asked him if everything was alright. "I can feel Itachi's power flowing through me… with his sharingan now mine, I am now invisible." Madara could feel dark a dark aura coming from Sasuke, which caused him to drip in sweat. "_He has truly let the darkness take over him; therefore, there is no way of pulling him back._"

"So Sasuke, do you still plan on going to Konoha?"

"That plan has not changed. I will crush Konoha and avenge Itachi and my clan." Madara just shook his head, reminding himself of his influence over Sasuke.

**xxx**

She was fed up with not being able to do anything. Ino wanted to be able to do more than just enter peoples' minds and heal cuts and scratches. After improving her strength and medical ninjutsu , she felt that a couple of more tools would place her amongst the upper echelon of Konoha shinobi, right up there with Root and ANBU nins. What could she possibly want to know that would warrant such thoughts? After spending much time reading up on elements at the library, Ino steps out of the library to find a messenger bird looking at her with a letter in its mouth. She reads the contents of the letter and her eyes are in shock. "These could be the jutsus I need to be one of the best; thank you birdie." With that, Ino began exchanging correspondence that eventually saw mysterious people from a few random villages come to equip her with the stuff so she could train with the jutsus and perhaps further the elements, maybe creating new techniques along the way. I know what you are thinking, INO? While the other Konoha women are happy with what they have, Ino wanted much more. Ino would not disclose to anyone the stuff she acquired because of potential exile and also her personal goal which could be summed up by the following:

"_I'll be ready for him._"

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He was ready. After killing all of the people and many intense sparring sessions with Madara, Sasuke was indeed ready. "So you're still going through with it eh Sasuke?"

"I'm going to crush Konoha and there is nothing you can say that'll change my mind." Madara only chuckled to himself, faintly wondering if this was the right course of action for him. "You do realize Sasuke that Konoha was reduced to nothing by Pain right - -"

"Pain made my mission all the simpler."

"Do you even have a plan? You went and failed with the Hachibi, barely escaping with your life. While Uzumaki Naruto is away, there are still many powerful shinobi clans still on their guard in Konoha, most notably the Aburames, Yamanakas, Inuzukas, and Hyuugas. Can you sit there with a straight face and tell me that you can defeat them ALL?" Sasuke was getting annoyed by Madara's pestering. "This will not be like the Hachibi mission… I will not fail on my revenge."

"Are you still sticking with whatever plan you have?"

"For the last time, YES - -"

"Even killing innocent people?" Madara barely evaded an Amaterasu by Sasuke, who was on his way out of the cave. "I will kill those bastard elders, then all of the ANBU and Root people. IF anyone that is not them decides to get in my way, they will feel my wrath at the cost of their life. It is likely that all of them will try to kill me, but I have a plan."

**xxx**

The girls were all chilling, eating and drinking sake. Sakura, Tenten, Hinata, and Ino were doing and saying typical things. "Looks like we'll be okay," said Tenten. Everyone was in accordance, including Ino, who had other things on her mind. "Ino you alright, you have not touched your dumplings."

"Oh I'm sorry, I guess I'm not hungry." They all noticed/complimented on how different Ino looked now. She was decked out in all black and her hair was cut to the length of her younger days. Her waist was still revealing, but the big difference was that she wore sleeves to cover her arms. "Why are there bandages on your hands, did you get blisters? _They are getting really annoying._ Before Ino could answer, she heard a blast coming from near the Hokage's office. Everyone started to panic, but not Ino because she knew who was coming. "Its show time ladies!"

"What do you mean Ino?"

"ARE YOU ALL SLOW? Who left the village 2 years ago? Who is here to exact revenge on everyone in our village for the destruction of his clan?" The women were in shock, not believing Ino that _he_ was here. "That's right ladies, Uchiha Sasuke is back."

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Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado had no chance. Both layed in the middle of dead ANBU and Root members paralyzed with fear, staring straight into the eyes of the last remaining Uchiha. "I see you took Itachi's eyes," said a severely weakened Utatane. "Whatever I have done is none of your business. You bastards ordered my brother to kill my clan and you had no remorse whatsoever for doing so. You two deserve to be where you currently are." Mitokado tried to do another jutsu, but Sasuke used his sword to cut his and for good measure Utatane's hands off at the wrist. "Both of you die a painful death for what you did to my clan."

"That is okay Sasuke," started a pale-looking Mitokado, "but please don't kill any innocent people. We tried warning our old teammate, Uchiha Kagami, to not interfere with the massacre, but he would not listen and clashed with your brother but that resulted in his death as well." Bad move on Mitokado's part because he just enraged Sasuke further to the point of instantly busting out his full Susanoo. "…yet another person that did not need to die. You people will join that bastard Danzo in hell!" There was no need to fire the bow because it took a couple of chidoris to finish off the elders. Just after killing the elders, Sasuke was surrounded by an army of Aburames, Hyuugas, and Inuzuka's which led to busting out the full Susanoo again. "I just killed every ANBU and Root person… what challenge could ANY of you possibly pose?" Trying to rationalize democratically with a gone person will only lead to failure and more carnage. "Do you see what's engulfing me? I know each of your respective clan's jutsus; it will not penetrate my Susanoo in the slightest."

"Underestimating us will not serve you any good."

"I see that you all would like to die. Allow me then to fulfill your requests." Sasuske turns off the Susanoo and makes some lightning clones, then bites his thumbs. "Tajuu Kuchiyose no jutsu." Each of the clans had no chance, seeing as the snakes crushed them to death and if they somehow managed to live through that, the hawks used their talons to rip them to shreds. Sasuke spared the lives of the heads of the clans. When they asked why he spared their lives, he simply said, "Itachi likely would've preferred it." With that, Sasuke was gone, satisfied that all that opposed were dealt with.

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The majority of the village was sparred. "_They should thank me for not killing them,_" Sasuke thought to himself as he was swimming in the lake. As he got out of the water, a giant tsunami was heading towards him, but he didn't bat an eye, using his chidori sword to slice the wave in half. "I never thought you would have that kind of power… Yamanaka Ino." Ino stood in the middle of the now waterless lake. "There's a lot of things that you do not know about me Sasuke."

"Are you actually planning to fight me? I do not wish to kill a woman, especially a weak one - -"

"HAGANE TSUKI!" Ino punched the lake and scores of earth came hurling towards Sasuke, who simply batted it away with his Susanoo. "I won't take the same approach as Sakura, that I can assure you."

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_A different approach! Next chapter: Ino's new powers defined… and executed?_


	2. Her Evil but Necessary Jutsu

Disclaimer= **I do not own Naruto.**

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Just what did Ino mean by a "different approach?" From whatever interpretative side you want to take, it would seem like Ino _doesn't _want to kill Sasuke. The Sakura reference are for when she tried to kill Sasuke twice. Regardless of all that, the "new" Ino was engaged in battle with the man who swore revenge on Konoha. "I see you have a Kekkei Genkai, am I wrong?" Sasuke's mind was sharp as usual. "You are correct; seems like that Kouton jutsu had no effect on you - -"

"OF COURSE IT DIDN'T - -" Sasuke didn't get to finish his sentence because Ino was behind him doing hand seals. "Suiton: Mizurappa!" The violent water wave was no match for the Uchiha mayne, swiping the water away with his Kusanagi sword. "Are you sure that was a good idea?" The shards of reflected water turned into explosive kunais, all aimed at Sasuke. _I got him!_

"Do you think that explosive display will take me down?" Sasuke was behind Ino with his Kusanagi sword at her neck, infused with lightning. "I told you that I do not kill women (with the exception of that bastard elder Utatane), but if you must insist, then I have no choice but to kill people that insult me with C-Rank suiton jutsu - -" Sasuke made the mistake of not securing Ino's hands, allowing her to make several clones that surrounded him. He simply sighed as the clones did Oodama Hagane Tsukis. "Even with several of you, that jutsu is useless!" Before the crushed earth reached Sasuke, he struck his ration infused Kusanagi sword to the ground, poofing away all of the clones. _Damnit, when did he have time for that?_

"You let your guard down too easily." Sasuke was behind Ino once again, this time tapping her spine with his finger infused with chidori. The force of the tap sent Ino flying/landing towards the caved in, waterless lake. Sasuke slowly walked towards the lake, assured that Ino had no more fight in her. "Are you done? I really do not want to continue to fight you." Sasuke grabbed Ino by the collar and looked straight at her, her eyes closed shut but still conscious. "Answer my question - -"

"D-Do you underestimate your opponents _this_ much?" Ino started undressing, much to Sasuke's shock. "What the hell are you doing?" Ino grabbed the steel belt wrapped around her waist and quickly binded Sasuke with it. Sasuke fired a Gouryuuka from his mouth sans hand seals to no avail because the Ino that got charred was a clone, thus poofing away. Immediately 3 other clones surrounded Sasuke from a midrange distance and immediately started doing hand seals. "Fuuton: Daitoppa!" That same jutsu with 3 times the force could probably off anybody, but Uchiha Sasuke, no. "I still do not understand the logic of you using C-Rank jutsu against me," Sasuke said standing atop of one of the remaining trees. "Is that all you know?" Ino didn't respond to that, opting instead to do some more hand seals for another jutsu, leaving Sasuke smiling because he recognized the rank of the jutsu. "It would seem that C-Rank jutsu isn't all you know."

"Fuuton: ATSUGAI!" Ino's Atsugai seemed like a giant rasengan due to its size. As a result of her expertise in molding, she took the atsugai and condensed it a bit, throwing it at Sasuke, which forced him to bust out full Susanoo. The force of the jutsu actually made full Susanoo fall back to Stage 3. "You might have a chance against me if you do more A-Rank jutsu like that." _Nothing I'm doing is working against him. I do not want to use "that jutsu" against him, but it's becoming increasingly clear that I might have to. _

"Is Kouton jutsu the only Kekkei Genkai you have?"

"Yes." Ino was nervous, thinking that Sasuke knew of his other jutsu. "I don't believe you. I think that you are holding back - -"

"Don't be silly; this is the only one that I have - -"

"Are you sure? I can tell that you are running out of chakra and since that is the case, you should seriously consider using your other genkai." Ino went from being nervous to severely annoyed. "I TOLD YOU THAT I HAVE NO OTHER KEKKEI GENKAI!" Ino made several clones, who tried hitting Sasuke with all of the jutsus she has done thus far but to no avail. "You truly have made it your mission to piss me off. This will be your end Yamanka Ino." Sasuke put his hands together and closed his eyes, with the effect being that the clouds stirred and darkened.

"**Sorai Chidori Hasshiteru.**" Thousands of laser-fast chidori blades came down from the sky right at Ino. Sasuke figured that this was it, that Ino was dead. Due to the amount of chakra needed for his technique, he was on his knees panting. "That was my end? I'm sorry Sasuke but… FAIL."

"CHIBI HAGANE TSUKI." A shocked Sasuke was thrown back by a less forceful steel punch. "How could you have survived that? That was my ultimate chidori!" Sasuke went from shocked to smiling while nursing some broken ribs. "You _do_ have a second Kekkei Genkai, don't you?"

"Yes. I would be dead if I didn't use this jutsu that many call evil, but I call necessary."

"Would that Kekkei Genkai be under those bandages you have on your hands?" Ino sighed, unbandaging her hands to reveal the squares on her palms. "I see you have _that_ Kekkei Genkai…"

"This is the beginning of YOUR end Sasuke."

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_What Kekkei Genkai does Ino wield that is leaving the mighty Sasuke shaken? Next Chapter= Sasuke's __**removal?**_


	3. Forever Gone

Disclaimer= **I do not own Naruto.**

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Had the battle only just begun? Ino had revealed the squares on her hands, meaning that she possessed the Meiton kekkei genkai. While entering a taijutsu phase of the battle, Ino remembers the quick rigorous training she went through to master all of the new jutsus she had learned, including mastery of meiton jutsu. She kept Sasuke in a taijutsu battle in order to quickly throw a plan together. "Hagane Tsuki - -"

"Raiken!" Sasuke sent Ino flying with a raiton version of juuken towards the lake. _I can't move. If I make anymore clones, I'm going to run out of chakra. I have enough chakra left for about 4 more jutsus._ Sasuke stood atop mountains of crushed earth, staring at a beaten Ino, who seemed to show no fight. He made 3 clones and each clone stood atop a mountain of earth. Cackling, each clone and Sasuke himself did handseals for what to him was to be the final jutsu. "Raiton…" _Move Ino, MOVE! _"Kinjutsu…" _I'm going to have to do that, but it will cost me later on…_

"LIMELIGHT!" It appeared that Sasuke hadn't fully mastered limelight because he and the clones were not very far away form each other, thus the blast looked to be minor. _MOVE!_ Ino mustered some strength to tap her body just under her heart and with that maneuver, her eyes turned white as she yelled. She got up and with her meiton handy, she absorbed the limelight blast. "Are you done?" Sasuke was on the ground, panting and bleeding profusely. "What is that jutsu you just did? None of my attacks seem to have any effect now."

"Don't worry; you will feel the effects right now." Sasuke tried using chidori, but he had exhausted damn near all of his chakra. Knowing this, Ino went with an early trump card. "I didn't want to do this, but you left me no choice Sasuke…" Ino had a clear view of Sasuke and immediately started doing handseals. "Meiton: Hikikaeru no jutsu." All of the attacks that Ino absorbed from Sasuke came back at him. You would think that with EMS, Sasuke would be invincible; that is not the case. It hadn't been long that he obtained it so it could possibly back fire on him. Sasuke used the full Susanoo to stop the wave of attacks coming at him and he did, but at a price. While he was able to fend off the meiton attack, his Susanoo was severely damaged. The Susanoo was still full, save the face because a section of the face got cleaved off, leaving only a skeletal part. It went away, leaving Sasuke lying on his back. "What the hell was that? I have the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan; I'm invincible!"

"You do indeed have the eternal sharingan, but it seems that you have severely exhausted it." Sasuke could not move his lower body, so he grabbed his Kusanagi sword and threw it at the limping Ino, who simply moved to the side. "You can't fight anymore Sasuke; give up." Before Sasuke attempted to do life-force thing, Ino hit him with a precursor. "Hyoton: Sokubaku Kurokari." Thick black ice rings shackled Sasuke's hands and legs and a ice rope binded his body. "You've already killed all the people you needed to kill Sasuke, there is no need to kill anyone else."

"What the hell do you know? Your clan had not been shunned like mine. Your clan was not hated like mine. After I get out of this, I'm going to - -" Ino slapped Sasuke across the face, disgusted by his crusade that he still wanted to continue. "What happened to you Sasuke? Has your Yami self devoured your soul?"

"I do not have a soul. Once I found out the truth, I let the darkness have my body. I thrive in darkness and I feed off hatred." Ino wasted no more time in placing her hand on Sasuke's stomach. _This isn't the Sasuke I used to know…_

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[**Flashback**]

We see a young Ino who is excited to go to school for the first time. She is not too far away when she trips over a rock, sending her tripping over herself. She immediately grabbed her ankle and started crying. As she is still crying, a young man around her age picks her up and carries her the rest of the way to school. "Hey! Let me down right now - -"

"You can't walk to school with your messed up ankle. I will carry you to school." She opened up her eyes and stared at a young Uchiha Sasuke struggling with her weight, but determined to get to school while carrying an injured person. "I'm Yamanaka Ino, whats your name?"

"Uchiha Sasuke." That's how they met, by shear fate and a rock. Ino really didn't really talk to Sasuke much after that but one day during a break from training, she looked around and eventually found Sasuke eating dumplings by a pond. Quietly, she sat near him and ate her lunch. "Do you always have your lunch here?"

"Yes, its cool to look at the water. You can see your face in the water." Ino looked over and she did indeed see her reflection in the water. "Thanks for helping me that day, I really appreciate it."

"Your welcome. It was the first day of school and I wanted everyone to be happy. You were crying so I thought carrying you to school would help - -"

"… and help it did!" For the rest of the time, Sasuke and Ino engaged in light conversation about their families, hobbies et al.

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Ino's mind returned to the present, not allowing herself to remember anymore from the past. _Wow, this really isn't the Sasuke that I used to know…_

"Go ahead and kill me." Ino was stunned by Sasuke's sudden change of course." You're right, I have killed all who I have wanted to kill."

"Kill me Ino so I can die in my darkness." Ino momentarily opened her eyes to look at the bloody, broken, and dirty Sasuke. "Through all of that darkness, I see another side of you that is kinder. I told you that I would take a different approach - -"

"SO KILL ME THEN!"

"I'm not going to kill you," Ino said, much to the surprise of Sasuke, "I'm going to use the remaining chakra I have to execute my final jutsu." With a hand on Sasuke's stomach, Ino took a deep breath. "Ultimate Meiton Technique: Meian Sakujo Suru." With a calculated grasp of her right hand, Ino lifted a dark substance from Sasuke, causing him to scream as if they were extracting a bijuu from him. With all of the dark substance removed, Ino tossed it in the air with the last bit of strength that she had. After that was done, Ino collapsed to the ground, barely able to mutter a "Sasuke-kun…" before dropping unconscious.

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_The battle is now over, so what is the fate of both Ino and Sasuke? The final chapter will explore that…_


	4. Extra Chapter: The Act of Deicide

Disclaimer= **I do not own Naruto.**

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The hospital stay lasted for a few months due to massive damage to ligaments and structural damage as well, all resulting from the overexertion Ino did to her body during the fight with Sasuke. Despite _winning_ the fight, exhausting the last of her chakra plus accessing her life-force like Guren did nearly killed her. It was impossible for Ino to get solitude because it seemed like EVERYONE from the village came and thanked her for "killing" the hated Uchiha man. Good thing the 5th Hokage clamped down on the number of visitors she could have. "One day, the 5th stopped by for a chat about everything that happened. "Are you feeling better Ino?" Ino tried giving a thumbs up, but she immediately winced in pain. "Don't force yourself too much; both of your arms are surgically repaired."

"Right."

"Are you ready to talk about what happened?" Ino sighed and looked out the window, clearly enthused about discussing that. "There really isn't anything to talk about Godaime-sama, seeing as I killed Sas - -"

"Sasuke is still alive." Ino feigned shock because "that jutsu" wasn't designed for harmful intent. "I know he is still alive."

"You did not intend to kill him?"

"My final attack, Meian Sakujo Suru, was a jutsu I created so I can remove Sasuke's darkness from his body. I want to bring him 'back from blind' so to speak." The 5th started pacing around the room as she continued her talk with Ino. "That jutsu could well be considered above S-Class due to its power and extreme side effects. You're lucky I had some sensors and ANBU follow you around - -"

"I thought Sasuke had killed all of the ANBU nin - -"

"He killed all the ANBU except the ones that guard me." The 5th explained how she knew about all of the training Ino went through and always had someone watch her. Ino asked her if she was becoming too powerful. "Yes you were because it isn't natural that a Chunin-level shinobi undergoes S-Class training to master _two_ kekkei genkais AND learn an assortment of water and wind release techniques. I was afraid that you were becoming like Uchiha Sasuke in regards to wanting to attain quick power."

"I don't blame you Godaime-sama because I would've done the same thing." Ino explained to the 5th that she trained so she could be prepared for Sasuke's arrival. "I wanted to be prepared for him because men settle things with their fists." The 5th pulled a chair beside Ino's bed, presumably to say something important. "You were victorious against a man with the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan eyes - - Ino, _you killed a God_." Ino thought about it for a minute but then shook her head, reiterating that she did not want to kill him, only remove the darkness engulfing his insides. "He was not ready to wield those powerful eyes. It seems that his Eternal power was to bust out a complete Susanoo within seconds after snapping his fingers."

"I know." The 5th finished talking about Sasuke and told Ino the really important news she had in store. "This will be an unprecedented move, but I will promote you from Chunin to Jounin. With your knowledge of medical ninjutsu as well as then other skills you learned you could even be labeled as a Sannin. In a short amount of time, that's how powerful you've gotten." The 5th was gauging Ino's face for a surprised expression, but never got one." Whats the matter Ino, why aren't you happy?"

"My surgically repaired arms have other ideas?" That made the 5th chuckle a bit, but she quickly got serious again. "You could even be Hokage, how does that sound?" That made Ino pause for a moment but again, she shook her head. "That's an honor to be even considered for such a responsibility; BUT, that position is reserved for Naruto whenever you decide to retire. He's always wanted that responsibility and he will get to be that one day."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely Godaime-sama… but I wouldn't mind being in the Konoha Council - -"

"DONE… once you are fully recovered."

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10 years pass and we find Ino by the Uchiha lake, trying desperate to master fire release jutsus. In the years that passed, Tsunade retired and Naruto was named the 6th Hokage (Sorry Danzo, you don't count). Madara was defeated and the world was at peace again. Oh, and Ino was appointed to the Konoha Council along with Sakura and Lee. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" It didn't come out very big, so Ino kept at it for hours and hours, until she passed out due to exhaustion. _Get your ass up Ino, you are not done yet!_ Ino got up after a little while and kept at it, with the results being the same. "DAMNIT, WHY CAN'T I DO IT - -" Ino suddenly felt someone put their arms around her. "You're not breathing right… Ino."

"_Sasuke-kun?_" Ino turned around and saw Sasuke, who was wearing dark clothing like her. Sasuke taught Ino the power proper breathing technique and in a short amount of time, Ino was spouting great fireballs. After a few, Sasuke told her to do one last big one.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique - -"

"Fire Release: Roaring Flame Sphere!" Both Ino and Sasuke spouted mambo fireballs into the sky, which heated up the atmosphere, making it rain. Ino was absolutely wiped and consequently collapsed, but Sasuke was there to stop the fall. "I'll always be here to hold you." Ino started to cry, asking Sasuke why he accepted the darkness. "I was blinded by hate. I wanted to kill my brother so bad that nothing else mattered. Once I learned the truth, I then turned to the darkness and let it devour me. But when we fought and I saw what your intentions were, I started thinking and when you used your darkness remover jutsu, my mind was clear."

"What did it say?"

"Someone out there cared about me; someone cared about me the entire time while the entire world hated me."

…" You cared about me. You allowed me to see the light." The rain came down hard as Sasuke laid on his back, with Ino rested her head on his chest. Some time passed, and they got up, shaking a little bit and Sasuke removing moss from Ino's shoulders. They looked into each other's eyes, which told each other they were primed for a kiss.

_**Even though its raining and she sweated copiously… she truly looks beautiful.**_

_I feel so protected in his strong embrace; such a muscular man… he really is a God… Since I was young, I've always felt something for Sasuke-kun. EVERY girl I knew then swooned over him, including myself, but he wasn't having it because he was going through his own personal hell with his family. Despite the coldness radiating from his body, I knew there was another side to him and I'm fortunate enough to see this side. He is finally mine…_

"I love you Ino - -"

"Eh?" Ino felt Sasuke's warm lips caress hers and she returned the warmth, closing her eyes to kiss him back. When they pulled back, the rain stopped and the skies cleared up. Both Ino and Sasuke were glowing as they touched foreheads; however, as they were nearing liplock, a chakra-infused lance diagonally impaled both of them. "Danzo-sama's wish is now fulfilled." _That voice! _"Sai, what is this…"

"What the hell did you do you Root bastard!" Sai got another lance and threw it again InoSasu, impaling their hearts. "X marks the spot." With a snap of his fingers, purple lightning came out of the lance, shocking both Ino and Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun, we can't get out - -"

"Yes we can, but…" Ino pressed for an answer, but Sasuke wouldn't budge. "Sasuke-kun!"

"I can use Susanoo's arms to pull out the lances, but we could be faced with two problems."

"What? They can't be that bad…"

"A. This purple lightning is not natural; its full of poison and B. We would have hemorrhages in our hearts from massive bleeding."

"_I see._" Ino didn't cry or panic; she just smiled. "What do we do now Sasuke-kun?"

"_A-Are you ready to die with me?_" Ino had flashbacks of her entire life, all of the good and bad. She remembered her Sensei's death as well as delivering Kurenai's baby. As the flashbacks ended, her and Sasuke's lives slowly faded away. The Root bastard suddenly appeared and yanked both lances off their bodies, causing both to gush out blood. "I-Ino."

"Yes?" Their eyes were narrowed and the breathing was labored, an indication that they were close to death. The impact of the yank had both lying on their backs. "Th-this is it for us." With the little strength that Ino had left, she mustered a tear, which Sasuke wiped with Susanoo. "We are leaving this world too early - -"

"I guess its our time to go." Sasuke used his Susanoo one last time to move both him and Ino to their sides, facing each other. "If we are going to die Ino, I want to die while holding your hand."

"_Hai, Sasuke-kun._" With their last bit of strength, they raise their arms with their hands intertwined. Death arrives for them as their intertwined hands drop, life sucked from their bodies, but with smiles across their faces. **– FIN - **


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